LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Louisville’s new police chief emailed officers Wednesday acknowledging she “may have mischaracterized” a key fact in the Breonna Taylor shooting during her introductory press conference.
Erika Shields, who will be sworn in January 19, said earlier Wednesday that Taylor was “in bed and the police came into her apartment and she ends up dead.” That comment was in response to a question about differences between the Louisville police shooting of Taylor and the Atlanta police shooting of Rayshard Brooks, which prompted Shields to resign as that city’s chief.
Her remark and others brought a sharp response from the city’s police union, which said in a statement that she and Mayor Greg Fischer ought to dispel “false narratives” about the case.
Reports that Taylor was asleep and in her bed when she was shot have been falsely perpetuated; her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, has said that he and Taylor were in bed watching a movie when they heard banging at the apartment door.
Those sounds were police attempting to serve a search warrant. Taylor and Walker were in the apartment’s hallway when police fired into the unit. Walker has acknowledged shooting one shot because he believed officers were intruders.
“After today’s press conference, I met with some officers who pointed out that I may have mischaracterized a critical fact in the Breonna Taylor case,” Shields wrote in the email reviewed by WDRB News. “I understand that words matter, facts matter, and the incredibly sensitive nature of this incident. I am grateful for the candor of the officers and am committed to getting it right as I move forward.”
River City FOP President Ryan Nichols recognized Shields' response.
"We're very hopeful that we can continue to meet with Chief Shields as she gets here and gets really going. We can work with her," Nichols said. "Like I said: She's got a lot of ground to make up as it relates to our officers."
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